Chapter 2
Three days later, at Grant Manor, Victoria was packing her things when Chloe came over, pretending to help.
"Victoria, are you sure you don't hate me?" Chloe asked, feigning concern, though her eyes betrayed her smugness.
"Hate you?" Victoria looked up, giving her a half-smile. "Why would I hate you?"
"B-Because Richard and I—" Chloe stammered.
"Oh, that," Victoria said coolly. "Chloe, do you really think there's anything left between Richard and me?"
Chloe was taken aback.
Victoria kept folding her clothes. "For years, we were only putting on a show as a couple. Behind closed doors, we were basically strangers. Did you really think I didn't know about you and Richard?
"I never called you out because I didn't care enough. Now that Richard's the one asking for a divorce, I ought to thank you guys for finally setting me free."
Chloe's face changed. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. She knew Victoria. This wasn't how Victoria was supposed to react.
For three years, Chloe always played the innocent victim, and Victoria would always go soft, comforting her and saying it wasn't her fault.
But today, Victoria seemed like a stranger.
"Victoria, you've changed," Chloe said.
"Have I?" Victoria snapped her suitcase shut. "Maybe I finally moved on. Life goes on, doesn't it?"
Richard walked in at that moment. "All packed? I transferred the money to your account."
Victoria checked her phone. The 15 million dollars had landed. "Thanks," she said politely. "I'll get out of your way now."
Richard watched Victoria's calm demeanor, but instead of feeling relieved, he felt uneasy.
He had braced himself for a messy showdown, expecting screaming and tears. But she was so composed that it felt almost unnatural. That caught him completely off guard.
"Victoria, are you sure you don't want anything else?" he asked.
Victoria dragged her suitcase to the door and shot Richard a look over her shoulder.
She said, "Richard, we've known each other for eight years and been married for three. I thought I had you all figured out, but now I realize I never really did. And you never really knew me either.
"When you finally bother to check what I've been investing in these last three years, I hope you can still keep your smile."
Then she walked out without a backward glance.
Richard and Chloe stood there, staring at each other, both at a loss for words.
"Richard, what did she mean by that?" Chloe asked, her voice tinged with panic.
Richard frowned, feeling like something was off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
He thought, 'Whatever. She's gone, the divorce papers are signed. What tricks could she possibly have left up her sleeve now? All I want now is to start fresh with Chloe.
'What could Victoria possibly have invested in? A few financial products at best. It can't be worth much now.'
*****
The very next day, while Richard and Chloe were celebrating at a Michelin-starred restaurant, Richard got a call from Lucas.
"Mr. Grant, we're representing Ms. Victoria Lane. We'd like to discuss the division of assets with you," Lucas said.
"Seriously, what assets are we talking about? Didn't we already sign the divorce papers?" Richard said, sounding annoyed.
Lucas kept his tone calm. "Mr. Grant, I think you may have misunderstood divorce law. The divorce agreement only reflects both parties' intentions. If any joint assets went undisclosed, the disadvantaged party has the right to request a new division."
"What undisclosed assets? I haven't hidden anything," Richard snapped.
"Here's the thing," Lucas said, "while you were married to Ms. Lane, you moved a large amount of joint assets around in various ways. Based on what we've found so far—"
Richard's heart started pounding. 'Something's wrong. This is bad.'
"What did you find?" he demanded.
"Mr. Grant, you better call your lawyer. We'll meet at 3 PM tomorrow on the 22nd floor of the Financial Tower to go over everything. If you don't show, we'll file for an asset freeze right away," Lucas said.
Then the line went dead.